Exam 6: Learning Curves

If a person performing a task has been achieving a 95 percent learning curve and you know that the task will end after the 100^th unit, the last unit produced will take 71.12 percent as much time as the first unit.

Suppose that Job A involves 30% hand assembly (manual work) and 70% machining (machine controlled work), Job B involves 50% hand assembly (manual work) and 50% machining (machine controlled work) and Job C involves 70% hand assembly (manual work) and 30% machining (machine controlled work).Comparing the learning percent in each of the three jobs using general guidelines, which of the following is correct?

You have just timed a person doing a job a four times.The first time it took the person 120 minutes, the second time it took 90 minutes, the third time it took 76.1 minutes, and the fourth time it took 67.5 minutes.Which learning curve unit improvement factor should you use?

You have determined that a 75 percent learning curve is appropriate for a task.If the initial timing of the person performing that job was 50 minutes, and if you need the job performed 500 times, how many minutes of work will be required?

When plotted on a graph, the learning curve can't be expressed as logarithm.

A learning curve is a line displaying the relationship between unit production time and the cumulative number of units produced.

You have just timed a person doing a hair cut for the first time.It took 50 minutes.What unit improvement factor learning curve would you use if the person took 35 minutes on the second hair cut?

Learning curves can be applied to individuals and to organizations.

On a learning curve plot, the time per unit is usually displayed on the vertical axis.

Economies of scale and the learning curve have opposite effects on capacity.

The 50^th repetition of a job is timed at 100 minutes.If the learning curve for this job is 90 percent, what is the estimated time for the 100^th repetition of this job?

You are a consultant called in to estimate the costs after the employees learn how to do a job more efficiently by repetition of new product.You find a company can produce a product the first time at a cost of $5,000.If their 90 percent learning curve allows them to reduce their costs on each unit, what is the total cost of producing 100 units of the new product?

The general guidelines provided in the textbook on improving individual learning based on learning curves include which of the following?

A company can produce a small lot of products the first time at a cost of $2,000.If their 85 percent learning curve allows them to reduce their costs on each lot, what is the total cost of producing 5 lots?

You have determined that a 60 percent learning curve is appropriate for a task.If your initial timing of person performing that task was 35 minutes and if you need the task performed 1,000 times, how many minutes of work will be required?

The unit improvement factor for a 60 percent learning curve at 25 units is 0.0933.The first and second timings of a person doing a job are 10 minutes and 6 minutes, respectively.The learning-adjusted time estimate for the unit number 25 is 0.9330 minute.

The point at which the scale economy curve and the learning curve intersect is called the capacity optimum.

If a person performing a task has been achieving a 75 percent learning curve and you know that the task will end after the 80^th unit, the last unit produced will take 17.12 percent as much time as the first unit.

An assumption of learning curves is that the time required to complete a unit will decrease at a decreasing rate as the cumulative number of units completed increases.

The learning curve states that the more experience you have in a particular activity; the less surprised you will be when something goes wrong.